UFC GO BIG Press Conference – The Squared Octagon Recap

Author’s note: I really tried to get material for this that wasn’t all McGregor, but let’s be honest, it was his press conference.

Dana begins the conference by saying what “GO BIG” is, which is just the theme for this upcoming year. They’ve done this before with “The Time is Now” and “Welcome to the Show”.

The next 40 or so minutes are all introducing fighters and showing video packages for upcoming fights, all worth a watch. Like the WWE, the UFC always knocks it out of the park with these.

So now we get to questions, otherwise known as “The Conor McGregor Hour”.

Before I talk about how great McGregor was here, I should address the people that think he was just being an asshole. MANY people online have been saying that, it seems. Here’s the thing: of fucking course he was being an asshole. That’s kiiinda his thing.

So now that I got that out of the way, let’s go through the highlights.

First guy asked Cowboy and Rafael dos Anjos what they thought about Conor saying they’d give up their fight to fight him. RDA said of course he would, Cerrone just tried to trash talk McGregor. Conor went on to say it’s a celebration when you get the call to fight him. You call your wife and say, “Baby we did it! Conor McGregor made us rich! Break out the red panties!”. Great stuff.

Question asked to Frankie Edgar and Chad Mendes on how they feel about McGregor moving up to 155, and whether or not they want a shot before he does. Frankie answers by saying he doesn’t care if it’s Conor or Aldo, he just wants the belt. Chad echoed, and threw in that he’d like a full camp against McGregor, then repeated that if Conor took the fight on two weeks notice, he’d kill him.

One of my favorite parts of the press conference was from Mr. Daniel Cormier. Alexander Gustafsson was asked once again about his fight with Jon Jones, and DC stepped in to tell the press that he thinks they should start talking about his wins. He’s tired of hearing about Gustafsson falling just short, and hopes that out of respect to him, they’ll bring up his wins for once.

Back to the Notorious one. Aldo talked about seeing him at the TUF house, and called him a joker. McGregor was asked to respond, and he said the first thing he told Jose was, “Wow, didn’t think I’d see you again.” At the TUF house Conor embraced Aldo and told him, “Everything’s gonna be a-ok. It’ll all be over before you know it. Please show up on December 12th.” I can’t really do it justice through a blog; just go to 55 minutes into the video and watch for yourself. It’s very funny.

They had another back-and-fourth where Aldo criticized McGregor’s skill of jiu jitsu and wrestling. McGregor told him that he still finished Chad in two rounds, and Jose took five. He then said he was worried that fight caused Aldo to have a stroke, and he thinks he should get medically tested because, “I love you. I love you like my bitch.”

Now, this is where it goes from good to great. Aldo had to leave an hour in because he was the best man at a wedding. McGregor harped on him for that, but I don’t think that’s so absurd. Because of this, they do the staredown now.

Frankie Edgar said he wanted the McGregor fight because, “Let’s be honest, he’s the money fight. I’d be stupid not to want that fight.” Conor applauded him and thanked him for telling the truth. For some reason it seems like Conor has more respect for Edgar than any other fighter in the division.

Holly Holm talked about the odds for her Rousey fight, and how drastic they are, but added, “Nobody would watch a fight if they knew the conclusion.” Couldn’t be more wrong. That’s Ronda’s whole appeal. It’s not, “Maybe this is it! Maybe she’ll finally lose!” It’s “How fast can she win this time?!”

Onto fan questions. As usual, a few wackos.

First up, mid-life crisis Conor McGregor:

Huge shocker here, but he overstayed his welcome and added nothing.

Next, a Paul Heyman wannabe planted by Daniel Cormier (yes, really):

This guy was so annoying. He cut a weird promo for the UFC and thanked everyone who put it together, then told Gustafsson not to bring his friends or family to UFC 192, because he’s going to get killed. DC said he planted him there and clearly thought it was so clever. I like Cormier a lot, but come on dude. Get off the stage.

Here’s a gentleman from my state of New Jersey!

Nice chain, bro. He told Dana he drove from Jersey, and Dana asked how long that took. This guy just tells Dana about his trip. “Oh we went to a Saints game, stayed in Tennessee, did this, did that”. Dana once again questioned how long it took to drive from New Jersey, and his response was, “We got here three days ago.”

The best question though, was a man who asked Cowboy and McGregor if they will fight in the next year, and the dialogue went as follows:

Donald Cerrone: “Go ahead, McNugget, wanna answer that one?”

Conor McGregor: “Ladies first.”

Even Cowboy got a big laugh out of that one.

To end the press conference, Dana White announced UFC 200 for July 9th, 2016. That week will also be International Fight Week.

[…] to 155), and Cowboy loses to dos Anjos (or wins and Dana gives McGregor a title shot anyway). The Go Big Press Conference gave the UFC all the promo footage they need for this one. McGregor’s first (or maybe second, […]